Fires, in particularly bushfires, can be a hazard to buildings/dwellings. Typically, such fires penetrate the weakest points of a building first and, once inside, can often find fuel to encourage the fire. This posses a significant threat to both the building/dwelling, the effects contained therein, and, more importantly, any people that may be inside.
One such weak point is in openings in the walls of the building, typically windows. Glass can easily be broken, particularly under extreme temperatures and, furthermore, is a poor thermal insulator meaning that radiant heat can still enter the building. To address this problem, shutters for windows can be utilised to cover the window. The shutters typically cover the window and are usually made of metal. When not in use, the shutters are usually stored on the sides of the window, or rolled into a roller assembly (e.g. much like a roller garage door).
Although a vast improvement on having no shutters, such shutters can conduct a significant amount of heat during a fire, and typically have little or no use when not protecting the opening/window from a fire, and are unsightly when not in their storage position.
It is an aim of this invention to provide an improved fire shutter which overcomes or ameliorates one or more of the disadvantages or problems described above, or which at least provides a useful alternative.